Baltimore’s success built on big plays

Saturday

Jan 19, 2013 at 5:58 PM

FOXBORO — One team in Sunday’s AFC Championship Game has had great success in using the long pass to score points quickly. The other side has had its best production in putting points on the board by stringing...

Paul Kenyon

FOXBORO — One team in Sunday’s AFC Championship Game has had great success in using the long pass to score points quickly. The other side has had its best production in putting points on the board by stringing together long, methodical drives.

Considering the history of the two teams that will meet at Gillette Stadium, it might come as a surprise which is which.

The explosive team that has loves the long ball? That’s Baltimore.

The squad that has spent the season controlling the ball and putting together more 10-play drives than any team in the league? That’s New England.

The numbers heading into the game offer an interesting contrast between the two offenses, a marked change from past seasons.

Baltimore has earned a spot in the title game by riding the arm of quarterback Joe Flacco, an arm many feel is the strongest in the league. In the two playoff victories thus far, Flacco has completed only 52.8 percent of his passes, 30 of 57. That is a lower percentage than Tom Brady had in any game all season.

But when Flacco has connected, it has been big, very big. He has piled up more than 20 yards per completion, 613 yards. He had touchdown passes against Denver of 70, 59 and 32 yards after having touchdown throws of 50 and 46 yards against the Colts.

It has created some highly unusual numbers for the Ravens. They score so quickly, their opponents have kept the ball far more than they have. Baltimore has had 130 offensive plays in their two playoff victories. Their opponents have had 174.

On Sunday, Flacco and his receivers will be working against the defense that allowed the most passes of 20-plus yards in the league. The Pats allowed 74 completions of at least 20 yards, although it must be pointed out that 42 of those came in the first half of the season, a more reasonable 32 in the second half after the Pats made changes in their defensive backfield.

In the meeting with the Pats in September, a 31-30 Ravens victory, Baltimore had five different receivers catch passes of 20 yards or more. Torrey Smith had a 38-yarder and two touchdowns, Dennis Pitta (20-yarder), Ray Rice (27), Anquan Boldin (24) and Jacoby Jones (41) also went long.

The Ravens have only ramped up the deep game in the playoffs. In their two postseason victories, they have completed 11 passes of more than 20 yards, five of more than 40 yards. No other team has had more than two plus-40 gains in the air.

The Patriots are fully aware of what the Ravens have been doing.

“As secondary players, we have to realize it is our job to take away those deep passes,” said Devin McCourty, who is expected to be at safety, rather than cornerback, on Sunday. “You can’t allow them to just throw the ball over our heads. I think all of us have to have that mentality and understand what they’re trying to do.

“I think the biggest thing is understanding how strong Flacco’s arm is,” McCourty said. “We already know how fast some of the receivers are. It’s just being aware.”

The Patriots, who not so long ago loved going deep, have operated differently this season. Helped by a much improved running game, the Pats have been easily the most consistent offense in the league, leading the league in scoring with 557 points, 76 more than second-place Denver and 159 more than the Ravens.

The Pats tied their own league record with 41 drives of 10 plays or more. While the Pats often struck quickly in the Randy Moss-era, they have been effective this season in using the underneath routes and methodically moving the ball down the field. His average of 7.6 yards gained every time he threw the ball was his lowest in a full season since 2006.

The loss of Rob Gronkowski for the season makes it even less likely that Brady will want to go deep. Gronkowski led the team, among players with at least 10 catches, with an average of 14.4 yards per reception.

The good news for the Patriots is that Brady does not need to throw as often as in the past. His team piled up 2,184 yards rushing, seventh best in the league and the highest total for the Pats since 2008. Brady speaks often about how he does not care about his numbers, but simply wants to do whatever is needed to help his team win. The opposing defensive coordinator, Dean Pees, knows Brady well. He was on the Patriots’ staff for six years. He was asked the other day how Brady can be stopped.

“Hire Tonya Harding,” he responded. “If they were getting off the bus, I’d spray water outside the bus and hope it freezes. He is who he is. I went against him up there in practice for six years. He’s as competitive of a person as I’ve ever been around. He can give you this little boyish look on TV, but he is a very, very, very competitive guy.

“He didn’t even like losing in practice,” Pees related. “The more we rode him on defense — because I had a couple trash-talkers — the harder he played. He is who he is. He’s going to play well. You expect him to play. We have to do the best job we can, fundamentally, to disrupt him and do some things to him. I have a lot of respect for him. He is a Hall of Fame quarterback.”

Brady might like to throw deep, but it is more likely he will be the guy throwing the short passes and Flacco will be the one going long in this game.